For thousands of refugees, the Mediterranean Sea is the last obstacle. On distant shores lies Greece, a center for displaced persons. In 2016 alone, over 50,000 refugees applied for asylum in Greece. Thousands more are to join their ranks since then. Hundreds drown in capsized vessels and makeshift rafts every year — a grim testament to the hardships many refugees are willing to endure for the chance at a better life.

The magic of the Belt and Road Initiative is not the economic benefits it will offer Turkey or China. Rather, it is how the BRI taps into Ankara’s desperation to find alternatives to its economic and strategic partners such as Germany and the United States, and how it supports China’s desire to establish its own economic architecture.